The Lost
by SensiblyScrewy
Summary: A girl with a deathly gift. Her guardian, a Lord with a hatred of pirates. An old friend with a need for protection. Takes place during the second movie maybe the third, too. Beckett/OC I doubt I'll need the rating, but better safe than sorry.
1. Lost

Well, now, I know I said I wouldn't be posting this until I finished it, but I /need/ some encouragement. Plus this actually allows me to skip around my ban-ment from fanfict. But anyways, this is my story that I've been working on for... several months. And so far I have nine chapters. I'll be posting another chapter in about a week unless I get a good response, or my excitement overrules me. I hope you all like it, and keep in mind my writing gets better as time goes on (in my opinion). Enjoy!

* * *

The cruel wind blew across the hill and the grass with it, as the small funeral procession slowly broke apart in ones, twos or threes and went home. All, except for two. The first was a young girl at the tender age of seven. She stood facing away from the grave site staring out into the shimmering ocean, her eyes wet with salty sorrow. The second of the two, came to stand besides her, not looking down as to give her a chance to hide her tears. She didn't, instead she turned towards her grandfather, catching him in a tight hug, and wept, hard and long, for her parents' untimely deaths. The old man was startled, but smiled sadly and he knelt down and picked the small girl up as she continued to cry and shudder into his shoulder. He hushed her as he walked down the hill with her in his arms, not trying to stop her tears, but perhaps to just make her and himself feel a little better. She had lost her parents and he a son, but they had both gained each other and they would love each other as much as possible until the day they would be parted.

* * *

"Ella? Ella, where are you, sweet-pea?" called the voice of Greenbury Lane as he looked up from the papers spread on his desk, to see that his granddaughter was no longer sitting in her normal place by the window.

"Grandfather, that's not my name! Here I am!" said a petite girl as she jumped up from her place behind the other side of the desk. Her grandfather feigned a frightened look and her bright smile widened. "Did I scare you? Were you really frightened, Grandfather?"

"Yes, I was. I nearly fainted right then and there!" The young girl giggled at the little antics he made to look like he was fainting.

"Grandfather!" the little girl scolded as she placed her hands on her hips and Lane was once again reminded of how much she looked like her mother. She had grown so much over the past year since he had taken her in, he hadn't believed it possible.

"Oh, I'm sorry." he half grunted as he lifted her up onto his lap. "But, Cinderella, my dear, you're just so beautiful, I couldn't help it." He smiled as she let loose her giggles again. He glanced at the clock on the wall. "And I'm afraid this little beauty needs her rest. We'll be in London by tomorrow evening and I can't have her falling asleep on me, eh?" He chuckled as she pouted.

"Just a little longer, please? I'm ever so excited, I won't be able to sleep!" she whined.

"Yes, but you'll need plenty of sleep if you're to move in to a new house tomorrow. You don't want to miss out on all the goings-on."

"Oh, Grandfather, are we really going to own a house?" she asked excitedly. She had barely been on land in so long and she missed the way the ground didn't move when you stood.

"Yes, yes, of course, but you'll miss out on it if you don't get your sweet little self to bed." he said as he placed her down and gave her soft shove on the rump. She walked a little ways and turned back to him, smiling deviously. Lane raised an eyebrow and made to get up. She yelped, turned around, and ran out the door, laughing all the way.

Lane leaned back into his chair, chuckling softly, and let his head fall back as he closed his eyes. That's when he heard it. At first it was a soft and quick whisper, but it slowly got louder until it was yelling in his ears.

"Greenbury Lane!" came the startlingly familiar Jamaican lilt. His eyes shot open and he sat straight in his chair as he looked around the room. When he saw her, he did a double take and his eyes widened.

"Calypso . . ." he whispered and she stepped into the light to confirm what he had said. She had long dread-locks, her brown skin was blackened at her mouth, and she was glaring at Lane with her eyes looking almost red. Behind her fury was a look of triumph at finally finding her enemy.

"Not anymore, Pirate Lord of de Caspian Sea. Now, t'anks to you, I am no longa de goddess of da ocean I once was. Now I am Tia Delma of da slums." she bit the last part out so that Lane flinched back slightly.

"What do you want? I am no longer a Pirate Lord, I cannot undo what has been done. I-"

"You t'ink dat I do not know dis? I am here for revenge!" she interrupted him darkly. "You will pay for what you have done to me, Pirate Lord. It was you who lead de court dat night, all dos years ago. You managed to dodge me dis long, but now . . . I have come... to show you what it feels like... to lose what you love most!" she yelled in between sobs. She lifted up her hand as though she were grabbing onto something and Lane was thrown against the wall, knocking his chair over in the process. He squirmed at the invisible grip on his neck.

"I-I am ready- to accept- my death!" he choked out, sputtering his words. He hoped with all his heart Ella wouldn't choose now to say good night to him.

Tia Delma raised an eyebrow at him as she stepped closer. "You do not listen, Greenbury. As I said, I am here to take away from you what you love de most."

Lane looked confused for a moment as he pondered her words. Then, once he realized what it was she was saying, he began to squirm against the wall even more. A wide, crafty grin spread across Tia Delma's face and she called out, "Cinderella, chile... come here."

"No! No, Ella stay there! Don't come in here!"

"Grandfather? What's wrong? Why are you yelling?" came Cinderella's soft voice as she appeared in the doorway with curiosity written on her face. Then, as her eyes landed on Tia Delma and her grandfather, her expression became one of shock.

"Come here, chile. Do not be afraid. Your grandpapa needs your help." Tia Delma beckoned to the small girl with her free hand. "Come, chile, come."

"Grandfather?" Cinderella whispered as she stepped closer to the other two.

"No! Ella, no! Calypso, stop this madness! Ella, stay there!" Lane desperately cried, but his words were lost in the soft chanting coming from Tia Delma as Ella continued to walk towards her. The chant was almost like a song and it seemed to echo hauntingly through the air. As Ella got closer, the music got louder and louder, until it shook the windows of the cabin. Finally, Ella reached Tia Delma and the girl reached out to touch her outstretched hand. Suddenly there was a bright light and Lane called out his granddaughter's name once again. When the light slowly dimmed Lane could vaguely see two figures, one slumped into a tight ball and the larger one standing over her. He heard a small whispering and had to step forward, which he now found he could do, to hear better.

"I have been deprived of love and for dat him shall be punished, for him do it for himself, but . . . I have found dat love is a wicked curse and I do not wish it upon anothar. And so, since it twas not you who have done anyt'ing wrong, I will leave you a gift, of sorts. Whomever dis gift is set upon, shall be judged and if dat person loves somet'ing as I have loved dey will face wot I have faced and will no longa feel dat emotion... nor anyt'ing else." Tia Delma stared at the child once more, then turned and was gone.

All was silent on the boat except for the swishing and sloshing of the water outside. Then: "Ella?" The silence pounded on Lane's ears. "Ella, are you alright?" Lane asked louder and this time there was a small movement in the ball on the floor.

"Grandfather?" a small voice sobbed.

"I'm here, Ella, I'm here." Lane said as he swiftly ran over to where the child sat and knelt down beside her. "Oh, my dear Cinderella, I though I'd lost-" He stopped suddenly, and fear passed over his face.

As he had been talking Ella had begun to lift her head up to see him and now she was staring him in the face. What had shocked him, however, was the fact that he was staring at one beautiful sea green eye and another, just as beautiful, but a deep, velvet red. As Lane looked on, he began to tremble and feel oh, so very cold. His shaking became more prominent and the coldness gave way to numbness, a heavy and hard numbness that seemed to eat slowly up his body. He opened his mouth to say something, anything, but nothing came out. He tried to take a breath, but he found that he couldn't move and, suddenly, he couldn't think. The last thing Greenbury Lane saw was a deep red eye staring at him in shock as he slowly turned to stone under it's gaze.

"Grandfather!"

* * *

Soft, dry sobs came seeping through the small openings and cracks of the ship, echoing along the halls, but the men on board were blatantly ignoring it. They had sent two men down to see what had caused all the ruckus earlier that night and only one had come back, speaking of the stoney fate of the other and the captain, and of a deep red eye reflected in the mirror across the room. From last night on the men had steered clear of the captain's cabin and had made sure to lock and secure it, so that no one could step out. They continued their trip to London at a much more hurried pace and reached the port three hours ahead of schedule. Word immediately got out about the strange creature being held captive aboard the new ship in port and it reached the ears of a man by the name of Mercer. The information was quickly relayed to one Cutler Beckett, who thought it right to drop in and visit Ella's late grandfather's ship. He brought along with him a group of fifteen or so men, for back up of course, and as he stepped onto the ship they split and formed a line behind him with Mercer coming to stand next to him.

"Good evening, gentlemen." Beckett said as he faced the crew, all of whom were taller than him.

"Who're you?" said one crew member as he eyed the men behind him. "What d'ya want?"

"I am Cutler Beckett esquire and I require an audience with your captive." he replied, seemingly not obligated to give further explanation.

"What for? She's some kind of a monster, you won't last one minute down there, bub. I barely got out wif me life." the sailor said with dignity, for he was the one that had been sent down before and had lived to tell the tale.

Beckett sighed, quietly and impatiently. "Yes, well, I'll just have to take my chances, won't I?" he said in a low monotone voice as he waved for his men to step forward. They did as they were told and pushed the protesting men aside as Beckett slowly stepped forward towards the cabin's door. He stopped in front of it, motioning for two other men to follow behind him, and didn't hesitate to open the door. Stepping in, he shut it behind him. Silence greeted them inside and Beckett's eyes weaved back and forth searching the room. He motioned again for his men to move forward and they did, with much reluctance.

Their foot steps echoed slightly in the large room and the men found the need to turn around several times in case someone, or something, was standing behind them ready to attack. After a few minutes of scared looks and weak searches around the cabin, the men relaxed enough to feel comfortable talking.

"Th-there's nothing here." one man chuckled. There was a small creak behind him.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that." Beckett mentioned in his uncaring voice as he slowly stepped forward, motioning for his men to take a look behind the man who had spoken. They did as they were told and slowly brought the lantern towards the dark corner. Suddenly a small voice crept out of the darkness.

"Don't come any closer!" it called, wavering slightly.

Beckett's eyes narrowed a tiny bit and he waved his men to continue, for they had stopped at the sound of the voice. It had sounded like a child's. "Why? What are you hiding?"

His men had reached the corner, now, and the lantern's light fell upon a small figure huddled as far as possible into the corner. Beckett held up his hand and his men stopped. He slowly stepped forward and turned the form around. He immediately felt cold as the gaze of a beautiful red colored eye stared back at him. Then he heard two screams start and fall short as his men fell to their fates. He stared at the small girl as her eyes slowly widened. He hadn't turned to stone! The young girl blinked and Beckett was released from her gaze. He looked down at the stoney remains of his men.

"Interesting." He glanced back at the girl who met his almost mock curious gaze with one of her own green and red ones. "Very interesting."

"Why aren't you turning to stone? That's what all the others did, that's what happened to all the others. I couldn't help it, all I did was look at them. I don't- I didn't know what to do. I didn't mean to!" the small girl continued on as Beckett stood there, listening. "All I did was walk into the room, I didn't know what was happening. I wanted to know why grandfather was yelling and some strange lady grandfather called Calypso kept saying my name over and over and then she started chanting and I don't know why, but I started walking towards her. I couldn't help it! Then when I took hold of the lady's hand, there was this horrible pain behind my eye and I heard grandfather call my name. I must have fallen asleep because I woke up and the lady was talking and she said such strange things about Grandfather being punished and giving me a gift to those who love and how they would never feel anything again. Then she was gone and Grandfather was calling my name and then- then . . . Oh, Grandfather!" the poor girl rambled until she heaved with dry sobs that held no tears.

Beckett stood there a moment longer, putting together all that the young girl had said. He turned sharply, went over to a small dresser at the side of the room, and picked up a handheld mirror. Then, without so much as looking at the wide eyed girl, he left the cabin and headed straight for his right-hand man, Mercer. He whispered something into his ear and handed him the mirror. Mercer looked surprised for a moment, but quickly hid the emotion and motioned for six of their men to follow him into the cabin. After they had entered the cabin all was silent and Beckett went to stand at the starboard side of the ship, looking out at the ocean. A few moments later Mercer and the men returned with the very skinny and tiny girl that was once Cinderella Lane and who now had a piece of cloth tied around her right eye. The crew stepped back as she came into view, for she was a haunting sight with her dirty and torn clothes that hung on her small frame. She stood wide-eyed and fearful as she looked around her.

Hearing his men come back, Beckett turned around. He stepped closer to the small girl and bowed slightly. "Pleased to meet you, Miss. May I be so bold as to ask your name?"

Ella looked up at the short man that managed to not be turned to stone. "I-it's Cinderella Charity Lane. Who are you?"

"I am Sir Cutler Beckett. Tell me, Miss Lane, do you have a place to stay?" Beckett asked with a small, sly grin spreading over his face. This girl would come in handy.

* * *

Small and hurried footsteps could be heard running through the little forest outside the Beckett residence, muffled by the soft, moist ground. Cinderella Lane's breaths came in short huffs as she ran as fast as she could toward the back door of the mansion. She heard the yells and taunts of the other children behind her and she sincerely wished that her governess had not decided to dress her in such a ridiculous outfit. Suddenly, as if by magic, a root appeared in front of her foot and she went hurling to the ground, bruising numerous parts of her and completely ruining her dress. She quickly turned around and began pulling at the root that held her ankle captive. From the way it was aching, she guessed it was sprained.

"There she is!" yelled a young boy by the name of John. Ella had grown fond of the other children she watched out of her window as they played next door, but Sir Beckett would not hear of her going outside to play with them and forbade her from stepping foot outside without her governess. Needless to say, Ella, being the crafty nine-year old that she was, found a time when Miss Smith had fallen asleep while she watched Ella practice her sewing, and Ella slipped quietly out of the house after laying a blanket atop of her governess. Now that she was outside, actually with the children, however, Ella found them to not be as much fun as she had first thought. "Quick, hold her down!" John continued.

Three boys hurried past him, while the two girls remained behind watching and giggling at this new game. The boys grabbed hold of each of her free limbs and held them to the ground, while John began to step towards them.

"Don't! Please, you don't understand!" Ella yelled as she squirmed against her captors. John was reaching closer and closer to her silk eye-patch. He gripped it's side, ready to pull. "No!"

The patch slid off and John seemed to pale considerably as he locked eyes with Ella and her one red eye, both he and she unable to look away. All at once John felt cold and began to shake. The other children not having the full capacity of the eye, but still feeling very uneasy and weary, began to back off and run away, leaving Ella and John alone. John seemed to freeze for a moment, then his eyes widened and he was engulfed in a stoney numbness. The deceased boy fell across Ella, pinning her down. She squirmed with all her might to get away from the heavy granite carcass, but it was to no avail and she suddenly felt very cold and afraid. She glanced around as if to look for someone to help her. Seeing no one, a deep and sickening aloneness spread through her gut and she began to scream with all her might.

"Help! Someone help me! Anybody, help!" Only after what felt like ages and the dark had taken it's hold on London, did her screaming fall into a low murmur as she fell into a fitful sleep. It was only then that two straight-backed figures detach themselves from the foliage surrounding the girl and her stone captor. The taller figure tore off the dead boy as the shorter one picked up the young girl. As they began to walk towards the house the shorter man said to his lacky, "Not a word of this to anyone. After she is in bed, I want you to head straight back there and dispose of the boy. And see what you can do about the other children. I don't want any rumors getting out."

"Yes, sir, and what about her?" Mercer asked once they had reached the top of the stairs and the light from the house shone down on Beckett's light brown wig and Ella's golden flowing hair. Beckett looked down at the girl in his stiff arms

"I'll tell her it was a dream." he said as he looked back up and continued to walk towards the house. Mercer followed close behind. "Oh, and Mercer?"

"Yes, sir?"

"I think it's time we put the plan into action and put Cinderella to work."

"Yes, sir." Mercer nodded as they made their way back into the warm house, finished with the day that would change Ella's and Beckett's lives forever.

* * *

"Miss! Miss Lane, please get up! M'Lord will have my head if you're late for your duties!" came the distressed voice of Miss Smith as she opened the enormous curtains of her charge's room. "Cinderella!"

"What is it now, Margaret?" Cinderella Lane's voice mumbled. "It's my birthday. I'm allowed to sleep in."

"Well, you can get your twenty-year old rump out of bed and tell your Uncle that. That is if you live long enough, your going to be late!" screeched Ella's governess.

"Oh, alright." Ella said as she threw back her covers, stepped out of bed and grabbed her eye-patch from it's place on her night stand, before she put it on and opened her eyes. "I suppose it's not going to be any different from any other birthday. Just like any other day." she sighed and walked over to her governess who was hiding something behind her back with an excited grin.

"I've got something for you. Unless you're too down in the dumps to open up a present." This perked Ella's ears up and she raised an eyebrow. "I thought so." Miss Smith quickly pulled her hands around front and showed Ella her gift. Ella smiled and took the offered parcel as she sat down on the bed and began to unwrap it. She gasped when she saw what was inside. There, seemingly shining in the light, was the book from Walden's store about every single pirate known to man. Her smile brightened considerably and she looked up at her governess.

"You like it?" asked a nervous looking Miss Smith. "I saw you staring at it when we visited the book store around the corner the other day. I know how much you like pirates and how Lord Beckett doesn't allow any books on them, but I thought if you just kept it a secret, no one would be the wiser."

"Oh, Margaret, it's wonderful, thank you! I'll start reading it right away." Ella said as she hid the book beneath her mattress.

"I'm glad, dear, and now I have another surprise for you. Lord Beckett's, actually."

Ella groaned. She truly didn't want any gifts from Beckett. The last had been a lesson on proper eating manners and somehow Ella had the feeling that he had given it to her just to see her flustered face at the interpretable insult.

"Oh, I think you'll like this one." Miss Smith said as she brought out a rather large box from it's place atop of Ella's desk. Intrigued, Ella lifted off the top of the box. She raised her eyebrows as she pulled out a deep sea green dress that would more than likely bring out her green eye.

She looked up at her governess with a sardonic look of expectation. "What's the occasion?"

"Nothing, that I know of. Just a kind guardian doting upon his ward?" They both chuckled at that.

"Well, I better get changed into it. He'll be expecting it." Ella mentioned as she stepped behind the changing screen with Miss Smith following behind her.

After a few minutes of fussing from Miss Smith and gasping from Ella, as she tried to take a breath in the skin tight dress, she stepped out from behind the screen and walked over to the mirror across the room. She stood there examining and evaluating herself. Really, she wasn't all that bad looking. She had long, flowing hair that was a dark golden brown color and it framed her face nicely. Her one visible eye was a deep sea green and it was placed upon one of her high cheek bones. As for her other eye . . .

"Ah, wait a minute. There's one more piece." Ella looked up to see Miss Smith holding up an eye-patch that was tinted a light green and held the picture of what seemed to be a black raven in flight. "You want to forget about it?"

Ella shook her head, knowing that her governess knew how she felt on that matter. "No, he'll be expecting it." she answered rather defeatedly.

Miss Smith gave her a understanding look and handed her the eye-patch as she looked away. Ella sighed and took off her usual eye-patch, placing it on her dresser, and strapped on her new one without so much as glancing at her red eye. Now that she saw the whole thing together, she had to say that the eye-patch did indeed help the dress in bringing out her green eye. She sighed again and told Ms. Smith she could turn around.

"Oh, dearie, you look beautiful! I knew the dress would look nice on you." Miss Smith exclaimed as she caught sight of Ella in the light. She quickly looked at the clock sitting on Ella's desk before politely shoving her out the door and to the stairs. "Quickly now, go and eat breakfast and then hurry to the carriage. M'Lord'll be waiting for you.

"Alright, alright, I'm going." came Ella's reply as she stepped down the stairs gracefully.

"Don't be late!" called Miss Smith as she watched her charge head towards the dining room. She sighed and walked back up the stairs to clean up Ella's room.

* * *

So, yeah. That's the first chapter. Yes, that's her real name. If you really think hard it fits with the title. Also, please forgive for any mistakes. Oh and, beware, I screwed up and wrote the third chapter with some characters that shouldn't be there, but I liked it so much, I kept it. I hope you all enjoyed. Please, please review. This time 'round I'm in it for the responses. So, please, do a girl a favor, feed my obsession. Thanks for reading! -Ebo


	2. Gift of Death

_**I got restless so I thought I'd give you my next chapter. Thanks you so much for the review **__**Little Miss Angel**__**! I'm glad to know you like it. Please keep reading! Again, remember my writing is definitely not the best, but I'd really like to hear what people think of this, so if you read and didn't leave a review, LEAVE ONE PLEASE. Thank you.**_

___**Disclaimer: It explains itself.**_

* * *

Ella's hard footsteps echoed through the long hallways of the jail house. She stared straight ahead, ignoring the screams and groans that surrounded her. She had walked these halls so many times that her ears automatically blotted out the sound. She had eaten breakfast the cook had made up for her, smiling as she did since he had cooked it up special for her birthday. After she had finished she thanked her and quickly headed out the door to the carriage, knowing all the while, that she was late. She hoped to God in heaven that he wouldn't get too angry when she got there. It always unnerved her when Beckett was angry. He didn't yell or anything like that, instead he was quiet and calm, but underneath it all Ella could just feel the rage boiling off of him. She reached the door and her footsteps fell to a stop. She gulped, then, taking a deep breath, she knocked twice and waited for the door to be unlocked. She heard the clicking of the many bolts that held the door shut and the final screech as the last bolt was moved from it's place. The door swung open revealing a medium sized room with a large mirror covering a wall on one side. It was furnished in nothing, but two chairs, one facing the mirror and the other facing it's partner and away from the mirror, while on the other side of the room sat a table with two other chairs and a few guards standing behind it. Seated in the chairs by the table was, first, the man known as Mercer, he held the normal scowl that seemed inseparable from his face. Next to him was, seated in a much fancier and comfortable chair, Lord Beckett, or Uncle Beckett as Ella had grown up calling him. When she walked in, he turned to look at her and she felt his eyes take in the dress she was wearing. She mentally sighed, happy that she had worn the dress. Maybe it would help sooth his irritation at her for being late. Then again, she'd been wrong before.

"Ah, my dear Cinderella, you finally decide to join us." Beckett said in his ever so slightly pompous voice, as she walked over to his table. When she curtsied Beckett stood up and waited for her to look back up at him, before he took her offered hand and placed a kiss on it. She inwardly bit her tongue, eating back the snide comment she had been about to give him, instead she smiled warmly and greeted him.

"Good morning, Uncle. I'm sorry I'm late. I had trouble getting going this morning." Ella said as she took back her hand, discreetly wiping it on her dress. "Thank you ever so much for this dress. It's very beautiful."

"Yes, very beautiful indeed." Beckett humored her as he sat back down. "But let us carry on with the day's work. We're a bit behind schedule."

"Yes, sir." Ella said quickly before he had time to say anything else. She didn't want to get scolded in that cold way of his on her birthday. She swiftly walked over to the chair facing the mirror and sat down. She waited patiently for the inevitable sound of the door in the back opening. She heard it, then the sound of Mercer rattling off whatever it was the poor man was accused of. Then the sound of his feet against the floor as the man was dragged to the chair opposite her. She tried not to look at him as she waited for the signal.

"Commence the execution." rang Mercer's voice.

That was her cue. Taking a deep breath, as she always did, Ella looked up at the young man and tried her best not to look directly at him so as not to remember him. It didn't help, all of her victims were etched into her mind forever. She could feel Beckett's eyes on her back and she made a point not to look in the mirror to see if he was watching. She bit her tongue again, lightly as to brace herself, and closed her eyes. Then, in one swift movement, reached up and peeled away her eye-patch. Ella could hear the man's heavy breathing. When she felt ready and braced, she opened her eyes and felt her red curse take control of her. She immediately began to feel cold as she recognized her eye's effect. The young man stared at her in horror as his and her feet started to feel numb, then their lower legs, then their thighs, continuing all the way until there was nothing left to feel. Ella blinked and shivered as the numbness left her and the young man's granite body was hauled off. If there was one thing she hated more then killing all these people for Beckett's own selfish social status, it was the fact that she felt everything they felt. Every time she lifted her eye-patch to look at the poor soul that was about to turn to stone, she too felt the coldness. She too began to tremble and shake. She too began to feel numb as though she were being engulfed in a stoney embrace. She shivered again and waited for her next victim.

"That will be all for today." came Beckett's voice and Ella's head shot up. She glanced in the mirror to look at him and opened her mouth to question why, when Beckett beat her to it. "Why, my dear Cinderella," Ella cringed slightly, she hated that name and much preferred Ella. "you didn't think I would have you work on your birthday, did you?" he asked, knowing very well that he had already had her execute one person that day.

"Well, I-I don't know..." Ella stammered. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had a day off that wasn't a holiday. It must have been last year sometime.

"No, you are to go home and continue your studies. Once you're finished you may do whatever you like." Beckett continued as he stood and walked over to stand behind her, placing his hands on her chair. Again, he knew that when Ella was done she'd only be allowed to do a hand full of things.

"But what about the.... the _others._" Ella continued to stammer as she tried to find a reason as to why Beckett would do this. It surely wasn't for her. They faced each other through the mirror, two piercing blue eyes staring into her velvet red and sea green ones.

"The others will just be taken care of in a slightly less humane manner." he answered, but Ella knew that the way they died through her was anything, but humane. Beckett reached down and took her eye-patch out of her hand to smoothed it out. "I'm afraid not everyone can have the honor of dying by your hand, or, pardon me, eye." he said as he slowly placed her eye-patch on her head latching it in the back. Ella shivered slightly for some reason, unbeknownst to her.

"Yes, Uncle." she said not knowing what else to say. She stood up and turned to give him a quick curtsy, avoiding his eyes. He bowed a little and she was off, the door swinging shut behind her, leaving Beckett standing behind an empty chair. He turned slowly, then walked swiftly toward his men.

"Gentlemen, shall we continue?"

* * *

Ella had taken the carriage home and as she stepped out she found her governess waiting for her. Ella immediately became suspicious. She'd never been home this early before. How did Miss Smith know that she'd be home early today?

"You don't seem very surprised that I'm home a bit prematurely." Ella said as her feet hit the dusty ground.

"Don't I?" said Miss Smith with a feigned uncaring tone. She took Ella's arm and began to lead her to the house.

"No, you don't." Ella answered as she followed her governess. Miss Smith glanced over and Ella raised her eyebrow.

"Oh, alright. Yes, I knew you'd be home early, we all knew, but we couldn't tell you. We weren't allowed to." Miss Smith retorted, obviously hating that she had been caught.

"So why?" asked Ella.

"That I don't know." Miss Smith sighed. "I mean it. He never told us why, just to expect you home an hour early."

"Then why in the world did he send me out there? It was only one person." Ella pondered as she and her governess entered the house.

"Maybe it was a very important one person or, maybe perhaps, since it's your birthday, he truly was trying to dote upon his ward?" asked the ever hopeful Miss Smith. The two began walking up the stairs.

"I bet it was just to see how flustered I'd be. I mean, he's never done it before. Why start now?"

"Ella, dear, I'm afraid you're just going to have to leave it at that. If you want to find out the real reason behind all of this your going to have to wait it out. And do your studies." Miss Smith added as she swung open the door to the small den that Ella used for her studies.

Ella sighed a small disappointed breath and entered the room. "It's going to be a long day." she said as the door swung shut.

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The clock toned five and Ella looked up from her book. She was reading the present that Margaret had given her that morning and was currently on the part about one of the more infamous pirates: Captain Jack Sparrow. It was really quite interesting and she had just started to read about the time he had sacked Nassau Port without firing a single shot, when the clock had chimed. Time for dinner. She quickly slid off of her bed and hid the book beneath her mattress. As she passed by the mirror, she stopped and straightened her dress out, smoothing out the wrinkles. Nodding with approval, she turned on her heel and headed out the door and down the stairs. Her shoes clacked against the stone floor as she walked towards the dining room. When she stepped softly into the room she saw Beckett sitting down at the end of the table speaking quietly to Mercer, who was standing next to him, bending down. Ella's presence went unnoticed, for half of her was hidden by one of the many curtains that furnished the dining area, and she leaned forward, trying to hear better without giving herself away.

"I want the preparations done a week in advance. Make sure everything goes smoothly-" A floor board creaked under Ella's foot and she winced. Mercer's head shot up and Ella found two pairs of eyes staring intently at her. She shifted on her feet and looked down as her cheeks flushed. She felt Beckett's eyes leave her for a moment, as he spoke to Mercer, then shift back to her, much less intense. "Leave us." he had said.

Mercer nodded stiffly and he walked away, still staring at Ella. He passed her, muttering a quick "Miss." before disappearing behind the door. The room became very still for some reason Ella could only guess at. Finally, after letting her stand in the silence for a moment longer than necessary, Beckett spoke.

"Sit down, Cinderella, you must be hungry." came his uncaring voice. "I had the cook make up your favorite dish for your birthday." Ella looked up, but avoided his eyes, feeling as though he were studying her. _He must be trying to figure out how much I heard,_ she thought to herself. She'd have to reassure him, then. She slowly walked over to her end of the table and sat down, not caring that Beckett hadn't pulled the chair out for her.

"Thank you, sir." Ella muttered before the butler and two maids walked in with their food. They set the plates on the table and poured Beckett some Merlot and, to Ella's surprise, they poured her some champagne. She had tasted it once before, but it had only been a little sip when she had snuck down stairs late at night. She remembered how it had delightfully bubbled on her tongue and left a strange taste in her mouth as the sweet, sparkling liquid had fizzed down her throat in that wonderful way, and seemed to rid her mind of any objections that might have formed about sneaking into her uncle's cellar. She looked up at Beckett and cocked her eyebrow, the awkward silence from before forgotten for the moment.

"I thought it a nice touch to the celebratory atmosphere." Beckett explained to her raised eyebrow. She thought she saw a bit of a smile on his lips, but she couldn't be sure. Muttering a thank you, Ella reached out and took a sip of the golden liquid. She smiled for it was just as wonderful as she remembered it to be. Sensing that things had calmed down a bit since she had first entered the room, Ella thought to try and bring up the earlier subject. She glanced up at Beckett over her glass and she saw him staring at his own as he spun the red liquid inside of it.

"What are the preparations for?" Ella asked suddenly, but Beckett seemed not to be fazed and he continued to spin his glass.

"That is a conversation for later tonight." he answered before taking a sip of his drink.

They continued their dinner in small silences, speaking now and then of their days, but mostly leaving each other to eat quietly. Though she didn't mean them to, Ella's thoughts kept drifting back to Beckett's conversation with Mercer, that she'd interrupted. What were the preparations for? Why did Beckett seem so secretive about it? But she kept her thoughts to herself, trying to bide her time since he had implied that that they would speak of it later. As Beckett slowly took his last bite of desert, Ella's knee shook impatiently. The man was the slowest eater she'd ever seen. Then Beckett rose, surprising her at the movement. He offered her his arm.

"Shall we take a walk?" he asked as he looked at her expectantly. Ella's brow furrowed, but she rose and took his stiff arm all the same. _Let him have his little game,_ she thought irritably.

He led her outside and into the garden. The setting sun painted parting strokes in the sky as it slowly turned from light blue, to red and orange and yellow, to the deep purple blue that was the night sky. Ella smiled and let go of his arm as she walked to the edge of the plot. The garden was placed a few paces away from a cliff that reached out towards the ocean that spread before it. She had always loved this part of the estate and had visited it often as a child. But, as she got older, she began to have more things to take care of and less time for her leisure. She walked as close as she could to the edge of the cliff, without feeling threatened of falling off, and breathed in the wonderful salty scent that brought back so many memories of her one year aboard her grandfather's ship.

"Ella."

She turned around sharply. He never used her nickname. He always enjoyed using Cinderella because he knew how much she hated it. Once she had turned around, she found that Beckett had kept walking with her and was standing ever so slightly behind her. After growing up with him and his never changing facial expressions, Ella had learned the little differences in them and prided herself in knowing when he was mad and when he was merely acting mad to frighten her. And when both took place. Now, however, she found that he wore an almost calculating look and, though she would never say it out loud, she found it rather interesting. The way his eyes glowed with a sardonic intelligence and his mouth held a nigh on constant sneer. Yes, she found him very interesting.

"Yes?" she breathed out, surprising herself with the softness of her tone.

"May, next year."

She blinked twice, looking up at him, for she was an inch or so shorter than he. "Pardon?"

"The wedding is to be in May of next year. The preparations are underway as you already heard." Beckett answered as he elaborated.

Now that she understood, but what was this about a wedding? "Wedding?" she asked speaking her thoughts.

Beckett who had looked away from her, now looked back and smiled his almost smile. "Yes, wedding. You see, Cinderella, now that I've become Lord Beckett and those who would have stunted that rise have been rid of, I am in need of, but one thing."

Curious and noticing that he had reverted back to calling her by her given name, Ella asked "What?"

Beckett's smile widened and Ella felt a strange feeling in her chest. He reached out for her hand and placed a delicate silver band on her ring finger. "A wife." His voice seemed to echo in Ella's ears.

"S-surely you don't mean that..." she half-laughed to him, unable to finish the sentence.

"Yes, that is entirely what I do mean, Miss Cinderella."

Suddenly everything clicked. The dress, the small work-day, Beckett's little conversation with Mercer, even the bloody dinner, was almost all about getting her feeling nice before he produced the good news. The news that she was to marry him by next May! Ella's mouth dropped open and for a moment she couldn't find anything to say. That seemed to work for her advantage and a wonderful idea popped into her head. She raised her hand swiftly and, before Beckett could react, there was a loud smack and a rather large, red mark appeared on his cheek. He turned back to her and she could feel the anger boil off of him. Not caring of the consequences she raised her hand again, but this time as she moved in for the mark Beckett's hand clamped down on her wrist.

He pulled her to him and hissed in her ear, "That was a mistake, my dear." He started dragged her along behind him as he started for the house. His back was as straight as ever as his hand gripped her small wrist tightly.

Ella, realizing the truth in his words, began to break out in a cold sweat. She should not have done that. Now he was mad and God knew how much she hated it when he was mad, as should all creatures. When he was mad he could be fierce and frightening, but could do it all without lifting a finger. Ella began to tremble. They reached the house and Beckett continued to pull Ella through the doors and up the stairs to her room. When they reached her door Beckett stopped and pulled Ella to stand in front of him so that he faced her. He grabbed her by her arms tightly and Ella could swear his eyes were like ice. She definitely didn't want to marry him, but slapping him definitely wasn't the best way to go about saying no.

"You _will_ do as I tell you and there _will_ be a wedding in May, whether you want it or not." Beckett's quiet voice becoming loud on certain words. "Is that clear?"

Ella couldn't answer.

"I said is that clear?" his ever soft voice said a bit too casually.

"Y-yes..." came Ella's voice as it struggled to find a holding.

Without saying another word Beckett threw open her bedroom door and walked into her room, his hand digging into her arm while he dragged her along with him. Stopping short of the bed, he swung her around so that she stumbled and fell against the bed-post.

"See you in the morning." He said before he turned and left the room, locking the door behind him. There was a moment of silence.

Uttering a shaky sigh of pent up anxiety, Ella fell back onto her bed. She stared at the canopy, not really thinking anything. She rolled onto her side and held up her hand to examine the engagement ring on her finger. It was beautiful, the silver band shown in the light and reflected a gleam of it into the two sapphires that were placed on each side of the flawless diamond that sat in the middle of the band. Her small form was slowly racked with heaving, dry sobs as her body searched for tears and, though finding none, continued to bombard her with tearless chokes of despair. She curled up into a little ball, hating her life and the woman that had given it to her. As the night grew on, she slowly fell asleep.

* * *

As the fog slowly lifted off the murky water and a black ship edged through it, a seemingly far off voice cawed out "Land ho!". The first mate of the ship happened to be walking underneath the crow's nest at the time and jumped considerably at the sound. He took swig of rum from his flask and began muttering about how it was bad luck to be out and about in a fog. He came up upon the helm where the captain was standing.

"Jack, will you explain to me again why it tis we're headin' to London, of all places, to kidnap Beckett's ward, of all people?" came the scratchy voice of Gibbs as he looked expectantly at the captain.

The captain turned around slightly and looked at his first mate incredulously, the beads in his hair clicking as they hit each other. "Mate, have I lead you astray, yet?" he asked as he held up his finger, before bending it slightly and adding "Er, well, in the past month?".

"No, but..." Gibbs began only to be interrupted by Jack.

"Then have a little trust in me." the captain said as he turned back to the wheel, glancing down at the compass in his hand as he did so. "Besides, Gibbs, I think this girl might have something that will come in handy in the near future."

"What's that, Jack?" said the first mate, who was again ready to place all his trust in his friend of many years.

"I dunno, mate. Just call it a feeling." Jack answered as he spun the wheel slightly to the left after looking at his compass. "A very strong one."

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_**Yay, our favorite pirate. Things jump right into action from here so hang on. Wow, am I corny. Well, I hope you enjoyed. Please R&R. Thanks. -Ebo**_


	3. Marriage and Marauders

**Hello all. I know I haven't updated in forever and a half, but I'm afraid I was feeling a little down that I didn't get much of a response. I realize now that that was completely and utterly stupid of me. I'm very sorry! Now. This chapter has a fault. There are characters in here that don't belong, but, since this is fanfiction and the chapter isn't all that bad, I'm leaving it as is. I hope you all enjoy it anyways. **

**I disclaim.**

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Ella's dreams were incoherent and ran into each other in a long and twisting order, never seeming to begin or end. The last, however, stood out from the others and was bright and realistic with color and emotion. It had come to start as Ella walked down the stairs of her residence to the large room at the bottom. She felt overly happy and her smile beamed at the people standing below the stairs. As she reached the bottom, she was conscious of the back of her dress hitting the floor as the young woman holding let it float to the ground. The music began and she headed towards the wide, open doors that led to the back yard and garden. When she reached the double doors and exited the mansion, her smile widened as she spotted the man at the end of the walkway and the people on each side began to clap politely. She made her way to the end of the walkway and stood besides the man. The music subsided and the priest began his sermon. She barely heard him. Her whole right side was tingling with the close presence of the man next to her and it took all of her self control not to fling her arms around his neck and attack his mouth. The priest paused and beckoned for a young lad, who was holding a pillow in his shaking hands. The boy came forward and Ella's groom took a delicate, gold band off of the pillow and placed it on her finger. She smiled and then she too reached down and took the remaining, thicker, gold band from the pillow to place on her companion. She looked up to see a light smile in his eyes. The priest began again, but only to ask her groom if he would take Ella to be his wife.

"I do." came the british accent. Her heart skipped a beat.

The priest asked her the same question, only referring to the man who wanted to be her husband.

"I do." Ella answered, surprising herself at how collected she sounded. She certainly didn't feel collected.

"Then, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." the priest said the words as he shut his bible. Those words that so many others had heard and that put her heart on high.

Her groom turned to face her, and she, him. He stepped forward, took her waist, and paused for a brief second, to let her breath hitch, before planting a quick, but passionate kiss upon her lips. Ella felt light flash before her eyes as his hands gripped her waist and his lips, hers. The kiss was broke, and she stared up into her lover's eyes as Cutler Beckett's melting blue ones stared back.

Ella awoke to a small crash, a little ways down the hall, beyond her door. She sat up in bed and blinked a few times. Had she really just dreamed that... that she was- Another sound emanated from the area outside her door, interrupting her thoughts. Her head snapped up. It had been a creek of the old floorboards, that spread throughout the house. Ella knew for a fact, that there would be no reason for anyone, be he butler or lord, to be out and about at this time of the night. It would be a very strange thing indeed for anyone to be up this late, herself excluded for less than obvious reasons. She gulped. There was another creek, very much closer than the last. Thinking quickly, Ella jumped down to the floor. Her teeth jarred a little bit at the jostle of the contact, but she ignored the feeling and swiftly walked to the door, placing her ear against the large, oak plank. She closed her eyes and tried her best to concentrate on any sound that might penetrate her room. She didn't have to wait long. A low, grumbled voice came easing through the door, soon after a somewhat more higher pitched voice whispered back. They continued talking as if they weren't standing in a strange house.

"Did ya 'ear that?" the low voice asked. "That... thumpin' noise?"

"Y-yeah... d'ya think it was a ghost?" said the higher voice sounding very nervous. Ella heard the muffled smack of a hand against fabric.

"Don't say stuff like that! Gives me the 'eebie-jeebies." She heard a mumbled sorry and then more movement. She strained, in the dim light of the fire, to hear better, when, suddenly the knob of the door began to twist. She clamped a hand over her mouth to stop the gasp that had been about to escape.

"It's locked!" came the low voice again, indignantly.

"Is it the right door?" the high voice whispered.

"The captain said it was the third door down the hall, on the right side, on the second floor." came the first voice, slowly.

"I thought it was the second door on the third floor." Ella heard another smack, this time sounding as if it was someone hitting their forehead.

"No, I specific'ly remember that it was the third door on the second floor." the low voice hissed at the high one. "It's gotta be this one. We'll just 'ave to pick it."

There was fumbling on the other side and Ella leaned as close to the door as she could. She heard a click suddenly and her visible eye widened. She quickly hid behind the door. She could tell immediately that they were pirates. Everything about them screamed it. Upon seeing her empty bed, the short one hissed out a choice word.

"It's empty!" exclaimed the tall man, whom Ella now placed with the higher voice she had heard.

The short man leaned down and placed a hand to the mattress. "But it's still warm. She's still 'ere.". The two looked up as he said this and began searching the room.

They had looked for her for a few minutes, when the taller man stepped back towards the open door, bumping into it. The door swung in more and Ella let out a small yelp as the doorknob jabbed into her side. The pirates looked up at the door. They shared a look and, before Ella could react, the door was swung open. It was then that she realized, in the back of her mind, that she still had on her clothes from earlier that day, including her eye-patch. At this moment, she didn't know whether that was a good or a bad thing. She truly detested killing people, but, if she had a choice, she would rather keep her life than die by the hands of a pirate, as interesting as they were. The two men stalked forward, smiling foolishly. She gulped. It was now or never.

Ella began to move to take away her eye-patch, but the two men were waiting for any kind of motion and were on her in a second. The short man's hand clamped down on her wrists and mouth while the taller man fumbled with some rope. After a minute or two, Ella's hands were bound with rope and her mouth with a bit of dirty cloth. The shorter man pushed her a little bit forward and Ella, unused to the lack of balance her tied hands provided, stumbled. She shot a glare back at them. Suddenly an idea popped up in her mind. She smiled behind her gag and sat down, abruptly. The two men stared at her with astonishment, as if she were doing handstands.

"Oh, come on!" the short man whined as he stomped his foot. "We don't 'ave time for this! Get up!"

"Please?" the other asked.

Ella just glared at them and shook her head. She wasn't going any where against her will. The short man cursed once before looking around. He glanced at the door and quickly walked out for a second. When he came back there was a panicked expression on his face.

"There's someone on the stairs!" he hissed. He looked down at Ella and glanced between her and the door. He seemed to be contemplating something. Finding the answer, he swiftly reached out, sword in hand, and brought it's butt down upon her head. Stars flashed behind her eyes and Ella slumped backwards, laying on the ground. She was vaguely aware of someone picking her up, as she drifted in and out of unconsciousness, and, she could have sworn, that she had been dropped from her second story window into the arms of another, right next to the old willow. The last thing she remembered was a blurry image of a black ship rocking on the murky waves as she was rowed towards it.

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**I believe I said at the beginning of this story that my writing gets better. I'll say it again. It does. Though by how much you all will have to judge. Just so everything is clear, I have no intention of finishing this fanfic. If, somehow, I become more interested in it again, I might. But I don't know. I will however update all the chapters that I have written. Who knows? Maybe I'll be inspired again and write two stories at once. Reviews will help. They're better than mysterious black ships. Even if the water is a bit murky. Thanks for reading.**


	4. Old Friends, Old Marks

**Here's the forth chapter, where Ella gets to meet our favorite pirate. I mean captain. Pirate captain. Anyways. I'm glad you all liked the last chapter. I do feel inclined to continue, but... well, I'm just not sure I'd do a good job on it. I hope you like the chapters I have written anyways. Enjoy.**

**I disclaim.**

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It was all very hazy. Ella remembered the pirates, the capture, and now waking up aboard a ship, but she found it all very hazy- as if she were forgetting something- and she strained to remember what it was. The straining, as well as the large bump on the back of her head, spawned a perplexing and horrible headache, which only caused her memory to be all the more hazy. She sighed from where she sat on the bumpy wood of the bench, the most comfortable spot in the whole brig. What, on earth, was happening? Why was she on a ship and locked in a brig? Did they, the pirates, plan on using her for ransom? Surely they didn't think that Lord Beckett would save her, did they? Then again, he might give a little chase since he thought her usefulness great enough to marry her.

Something popped in Ella's mind.

The wedding! The _dream._ She breathed in sharply. How could she have forgotten the dream? That horribly perplexing dream. The was no way in the world that she would ever _want_ to marry Cutler Beckett, let alone love him! But the feelings and emotions she had had in the dream were so... realistic. Ella shivered against the cold wall she leaned on. Whether it was from the chilly dampness of the cell or from some other reason, she could not tell. Footsteps fell from the stairs beyond the brig's door and, soon after, the door swung open. Ella stared at the two dark skinned men that walked in. One of the men stepped forward and opened her cell door. He stood back and jingled the keys in front of him.

"The captain wants to see you." he said in an unfamiliar lilt. Ella just kept looking at him. Her faced showed no expression, but in the back of her mind she was frantically searching for a plan of some sort. Pirates liked bargaining, didn't they? Maybe she could make some sort of deal with the captain...

"I said-" the pirate began again, only to stop short at Ella's rise. His brow crinkled, but he didn't continue. Instead he reached out towards her and cuffed her hands in a frayed looking rope. The two men then started up the stairs, one in front of her and one behind her. As they walked up on deck, Ella could feel the eyes of the other shipmates on her. She tried her best to stand straight and tall as if she weren't wet and bedraggled and on a pirate ship. It wasn't easy and, since the air around her smelled so fresh and clean, she had to resist the urge to beam up at the sun. They crossed the deck and one of the men reached forward to knock on the captain's cabin door. She heard a mumbled "come in" and the man entered, dragging Ella along behind him. She stumbled as she walked into the room and squinted in the dim light. She quickly spotted two men standing over a table with a map placed over it. Hearing the group enter, the two men turned to look at them, and Ella had her first sight of Captain Jack Sparrow. And Mr. Gibbs.

The girl, Jack found, was, well, not at all a girl and Jack found himself thinking they had brought him the wrong person. He had been expecting a small, spry thing of 16 or so. This woman looked to be around 19 and, though still small, held a certain elegance about her that seemed to add on to her height. He found himself thinking this, only to realize that it was, indeed, the right person. There was something about her that greatly reminded him of Cutler Beckett. Maybe it was the composed face or the straight back. Or maybe it was the cunning gleam in her eye. Jack blinked and looked closer. Only one of her eyes was visible, the other was hidden behind a light green eye-patch, donned with a pitch black raven. That was new. He cleared his throat and smirked.

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Beckett." Jack placed his hands together, as if he were praying, and bowed a little. Her eye narrowed somewhat.

"It's Miss Ella Lane, actually, and you are?" she asked in a slightly mocking voice. Yes, this was definitely Beckett's ward.

Jack's grin spread and he took off his hat to give her a full fledged bow. "Captain Jack Sparrow, at your service." As he straightened back up, he noticed her visible eye widen briefly. Ah, so she knew of him. His ego was raised a bit more than necessary.

"Jack Sparrow? What are you doing in England?"

"Paying a visit to an old friend."

"I hardly consider kidnapping me during the middle night a well thought out visit. Besides, I don't recall ever having the pleasure of meeting you." Her voice sounding ever so much like her guardian's.

"I never said I was visiting you. Really, dearie, you mustn't put yourself on a pedestal like that." Jack answered scoldingly.

"Oh? Then I'm afraid I don't fully understand why I'm here, Captain. I was under the impression that I was being kidnapped." The woman said as she followed Jack around the room with her eye. He came up to stand in front of her, searching her face. He couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw her bottom lip trembling subtly. So she _was_ afraid. He reached out to take her hand. She resisted at first, but gave in, and he brought her hand to his lips placing a light kiss on it.

"Call me Jack."

Ella thought she was going to be sick. She could feel the bile flowing up in the back of her throat and she struggled to stay in control of her emotions. She took a deep, silent breath. Then she plastered a clearly fake smile on her face and said tooth-achingly sweet "And you may call me Miss Lane." she bit the last part out.

She thought she saw him twitch. Jack turned and headed towards the table, picking up a rather dented teapot before pouring the contents into a teacup just as crippled. "Would you like some tea, Miss Lane?"

Ella sighed, getting impatient. "Mr. Sparrow, are you quite done? I would truly like to know why I'm being held captive, which I assume I am, and what it is you want, assuming I'm being held captive."

Jack looked up at Ella with a bit of curiosity etched into his face. "M'sorry, love, I thought we'd already gone over that."

"Clearly not enough." she answered, back to the mocking voice from before.

The captain straightened up as he continued to stare at Ella. "You wish to know why I've taken you aboard me ship?" Ella nodded. "While as I did not, in fact, take you hostage and am not planning to keep you for ransom, as you most likely thought, I'm actually here to ask for assistance as it were, as you most likely did not thought... think. Savvy?" He nodded as he corrected himself.

Ella quirked an eyebrow at the evasive captain and took to walking around the room, eyeing things as she went. She could feel his eyes on her back, she could always feel when someone was watching her, and she decided to make him wait for an answer that she had yet to come up with. After a few moments of silent walking she turned to lean on the large window that covered one wall of the cabin. She found Jack sitting atop his desk, seemingly ignoring her, picking at the black crud under his fingernails.

"What is it you want?"

He looked up to smile at her, "Ah, well, you see, love, I'm in a bit of a pickle. There seems to be a misunderstanding between me and a mate of mine. A few years ago we had a transaction of sorts, with the outcome benefitting yours truly. The transaction included a bit about thirteen years from that day, give or take, me mate would get his half of the bargain. Now, however, times have changed and I feel that it would not be in me best interests to comply to the other party's interests. I've also come to the knowledge that you, my dear, are in possession of a competence that would there-in help to lean the situation my way. Do I have your consent?"

"You have yet to ask the favor." came Ella's reply for, unlike Mr. Gibbs, she had followed every word Jack had spewed.

"Y'see, love, I mean to ask you to allow your... competence to aid me in persuading me mate to allow me to not keep me end of the bargain in exchange for another trade. Or, possibly voiding my end all together." Jack paused before taking a sip of his questionable looking tea and continuing, "If you would so inclined as to acquiesce." he smirked behind his mustache.

"No."

Jack looked taken aback for a moment. His upper lip twitched unconsciously. "No?"

"No." Ella repeated, not giving further explanation. At the time, her mind was a whir of thoughts. How did he know of her... her eye? Then another thought came, relaxing her a bit with the possibility. _Did_ he know of his eye, or just that she had a very useful talent? _He hasn't actually said anything about it yet. Maybe he doesn't know and he's just bluffing, _she thought.

"May I ask, why not?" he asked, his voice a pitch or two higher than usual.

"At the moment, I see no reason as to why I should do anything to help you, with this ability you say I have, and seeing as I am being held captive," she held up her bound hands for emphasis, "I see no reason as to why I should trust you."

Jack opened his mouth, as if to say something, then shut it before saying a blatant "I see your point."

The woman smiled at Jack, mockingly. This woman was a minx. A mix between two of the most formidable people Jack had ever met, Cutler Beckett and Elizabeth Swann. _Bugger._

He turned and nodded his head to Mr. Gibbs, who quickly walked over and cut the alleged captive's bonds. She rubbed her stinging wrists before placing her arms on her chest, folding them over one another.

"If you expect me to automatically consent to your request, you are very mistaken. Somehow I still find no logic in my helping you." she said, haughtily. Jack was getting very fed up with her glaring disrespect for him. He stood up from his place on his desk and swaggered over to his chair behind it, before plopping down and laying one leg over the other.

"What, pray tell, might tip you in a favorable direction, Miss Lane?" he clasped his fingers in front of him, leaning his mouth against them.

"Jack, call me Ella." she said sweetly. _Too_ sweetly. What was she playing at? He waited for her to continue. "You know, Jack, we're both keeping a secret. Don't try to deny it and I won't deny mine. We both hold something the other wants. I want my freedom and you want to know what it is I possess."

"Correction, love, I _wish_ to know what it is you possess, but I rather would like you to help me to-"

"-to settle your debt. Yes, yes I know. But at the moment I'm not feeling inclined to consent to either demand." she paused, "Unless there was something in it for me."

"M'afraid that I can't let you go, love, so you might as well give up on that option."

"If that's the case, I'm afraid that I can't agree to your request." she answered, just as quickly as Jack had. He mentally sighed in his mind. What an annoying woman. He leaned back in his chair and rested his head on his hand.

"Then, this conversation is, undoubtedly, over- since neither of us has anything they wish to barter with- and you shall be placed back in the brig." Jack waved for one of the two dark-skinned men from before to step forward.

The newly announced Ella, seemed to start and looked around distraughtly for a moment. The man stepped up to her and gently took ahold of her arm, leading her towards the door. Her expression slowly changed to one of disappointment.

"If that is what you wish, Jack, but, though I will not tell you my secret, I had so hoped to give you a few hints so that you might figure it out on your own. But, oh well. You seem to be a smart man, you'll find out the answer." she sighed.

Jack lurched forward in his chair. He hesitated before giving a quick "Wait." to the man leading her. "What kind of... hints?"

A small smile crossed Ella face and she turned to face him.

"What do you know about heathen goddesses?"

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**And there you have it, folks. Ella meets her kidnapper. Jack meets female Beckett. *snicker* Thank you again for the reviews and favorites and alerts etc, etc. I appreciate it all. Please continue reading, because it just might give me a confidence boost where this story is concerned. Thanks for reading!**


	5. Lords and Missing Ladies

There was a loud pounding his door. He opened his eyes crossly and turned his head to look across the bed at the muffled yelling. The noise stopped for a moment, but then started again at ten-fold. Sighing, Cutler got out of bed and went to open the door, not bothering with a robe. He had had a stressful night and wished nothing more than to fall back asleep. When he opened the door he found the calling culprit to be his head butler, bald head and cheeks flushed furiously. His expression was one of anxiousness.

With taut lips Beckett gave the man a glare and said irritably, "Is there a reason for waking me at this ungodly hour?"

The butler hesitated for a moment, before he said quickly "It's the little miss, m'Lord!"

Beckett closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his noes. "Yes, what about Cinderella?" his sarcasm seemed to spur the little butler on and he wet his lips.

"She's gone, sir! We've been searching the whole house and we haven't found her anywhere!"

At first he wasn't inclined to believe it, but when Beckett saw the sincere worry in his butler's eyes, his blood ran cold. He shoved the man out of the way and headed hurriedly towards his ward's room. Throwing open the door, his eyes found the place expectedly empty of life. His manservant came running to a halt behind him, putting his hands on his chubby knees to catch his breath.

"Call for Mr. Mercer and tell him to hurry. He'll be at the _Blacksmith's Hammer_. Keep searching the grounds. Look everywhere."

The balding man nodded his head vigorously, still breathing heavy, and set off to find a messenger. Cutler leaned against the wall once his butler was gone. He closed his eyes and brought a hand up to smooth away his brown hair from his face. He was breathing deeply trying to hold back the lump of panic that was thrown up into his throat. He opened his eyes and looked around the room. They landed on Ella's bedside table and he noticed that the drawer was open. Not really paying attention to what he was doing, he walked over and went to shut it, only to find a something blocking his attempt. The something turned out to be a small book bound in brown leather. He sat down on the bed, opened the book to the first page, and read from the top. It was Ella's journal. He stared down the small book in his hands as his knuckles turned white, and he struggled to force down the horrid emotion that threatened to escape. He sat that way until there was a polite knock. He turned his head to find Mercer standing in the doorway, looking thoroughly disgruntled.

Cutler motioned for him to come in and close the door, which he did. His master slowly slumped, elbows on knees, and placed his head in his hands, seemingly trying to get rid of a headache.

"Ella's gone." he said.

"I know, sir. I came as soon as they found me." answered Mercer as he glanced around the room.

"I shouldn't have sent you out."

"The errand needed to be done." Mercer said with a shrug.

"It could have waited until later." countered Beckett, "There should have been someone, at least someone, watching her, if not you."

"Sir, it can't be helped. We have a search party going around the grounds, if she's still in the area we'll find her." he paused, pondering something, "Did you tell her?"

"Yes."

"How did she take it?" Mercer asked raising his eyebrow.

"Do you really need to ask that?" Beckett chuckled out darkly. "It is Cinderella we're talking about."

"I suppose you reason she ran away, sir?"

"Well, what else am I supposed to think? She was so upset when I told her she hit me." Beckett bit out. He looked up to see Mercer smirking a little and glared at him. "I'm glad you think this is so bloody funny."

"Begging your pardon, sir." Mercer amended, though there was still a trace of the smile left.

Sighing, for what seemed to be the tenth time in the past half-hour, Beckett stared hard at the floor. "I wouldn't put it past her to run away if she had the chance and, with no one watching her, I'm sure she saw it and took it."

"Miss Lane isn't stupid, sir, she wouldn't run away unless she had a good place to go and a plan to back her up. There's no way she would have found a place to go so that option's out. There's no way she could have ran away, sir."

"I'm afraid the other option isn't to my liking either. Though how anyone got into the house is beyond me. I'll have to set up more security when and if she's back." the lord said, still glaring at the ground.

A tense silence over took the two. Mercer, though not usually one to start a conversation, noticed the little book sitting next to his master. He pointed to it. "Found her diary?"

Beckett looked up at him, raising his eyebrows questioningly. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you know of it. I did tell you to keep an eye on her." He looked at the object of topic and picked it up, flipping through the pages. "She's quite the poet."

Mercer began to say something when there was a knock at the door.

"Mr. Mercer, Lord Beckett!" came the voice of the head butler.

Standing up as Mercer made for the door, Beckett hid the journal behind his back. The door was opened and the round butler stumbled in. He seemed even more anxious then before.

"Lord Beckett, sir, there's been a report that a ship, resembling the _Black Pearl_, was seen sailing off the coast, not but an hour or so ago." the old man exclaimed.

Mercer turned sharply towards Beckett, who's eyes had narrowed considerably. He began pacing around the room, hands clasped behind his back and brown hair falling in his face. The portly butler scrambled out the door at the motion of Mercer.

Beckett looked up at his servant. "Go to the docks. Don't be seen. I want to know everything possible of knowing. If it's what I suspect... I will be leaving immediately."

"Yes, sir." With that the clerk was gone and Beckett was alone with his thoughts. And Ella's journal.

Looking at the offending material, he no longer felt the panic from before. Beckett understood the situation now, or at least it was soon to be held in the light, if Mercer's trip proved eventful. Again, he sat down on the bed, opening to the first page of the book.

_Dear Diary,_

_Oh my, those words are bothersome. I feel as though I'm a schoolgirl writing in here. For goodness sake, I'm bloody nineteen! I have no idea why my uncle thought it appropriate to purchase this for me. I have a sneaking suspicion that he does things like that just to laugh at my expression (which I can assure was _most_ pleasantly surprised). My "uncle" is more commonly known as Lord Cutler Beckett. Lord, thanks to me. You see I have this... ability, you could say. I have one perfectly normal green eye and one not so normal eye. The not so normal, red eye, I have to keep covered at almost all times. For (I apologize, for there is no delicate way to say this) if someone were to look me in the eye, or even at my uncovered red eye, they, and I, will both begin to feel cold, then numb, and then nothing at all. I say nothing at all because they turn to stone. I think in the past year I have turned... 182, give or take a few, people to granite. I am not proud of that point. In fact, I wish at times that I were dead with them. Sometimes I think I am. Surprisingly enough, I do not hate Lord Beckett for using me for his own purposes. He took me in when I had no where else to go and, though it was for his own gain, I will always feel grateful for this. He is a ruthless chit and I hope he burns in the earth's firey belly, but I am appreciative of him. It's also a plus for him that my eye doesn't seem to effect him. I remember the last time I tried, I had been about 13 or 14 at the time, and I had just "punished" my first child. It was horrible. I have never known another feeling than the fear and pain and disgust that I feel when I put to death a child. I was sick for days after and was gone from my duties for so long that Lord Beckett had seen it fit to pay me a visit. Upon seeing him I immediately set out to show him the pain I had felt, that the poor boy had felt (I can still see his face to this day). Needless to say, Beckett felt nothing, ignoring my attempts as if I were a fly. I wish I could say that I hated him for that, but even then I found myself unable to hate the man. I should hate him for that, but that would be redundant. But I have rambled on now and I fear that I have done exactly what I told myself I would not do. I'm beginning to like this book. _

_With love,_

_Cinderella Lane_

* * *

**Well, I'm afraid that Beckett was more than a little OOC in this, but as I said before (or at least I think I said) I'm not changing anything besides a few grammatical errors and things like that. In my opinion, there are a few chapters coming up that I would consider the best out of all the ones written. Mostly they're just Jack and Ella bickering, but I had fun writing them. Thank you for the reviews, they are sorely appreciated. They make me feel good! Thanks, again, for reading. **


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